Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) ( UPSC Prelims)

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Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora

Objective: A voluntary international agreement among governments to ensure that international trade in wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.
  ● Legally binding on Parties, but does not replace national laws.  
 Origin: Drafted in 1963 following an IUCN resolution, and came into force in 1975.
 Parties: 185 parties (including India, which ratified it in 1976).
 Conference of Parties (CoP): The highest decision-making body, with CoP3 held in 1981 in New Delhi.
 CITES Three Appendices: Based on the degree of protection needed.
  ● Appendix I: Species threatened with extinction, with trade permitted only in exceptional cases.  
  ● Appendix II: Species not necessarily threatened with extinction, but trade must be controlled.  
  ● Appendix III: Species protected in at least one country, which has requested assistance from other CITES Parties in controlling the trade.  
 Key Initiatives of CITES:
  ● MIKE Programme to monitor illegal killing of elephants.  
  ● CITES Tree Species Programme (CTSP).  
  ● International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC), established in 2010.  
 Report: World Wildlife Trade Report.